The blotter

The New York Times front-pages the liberal blog that has been covering the trial, Firedoglake.com, which "has offered intensive trial coverage, using some six contributors in rotation. They include a former prosecutor, a current defense lawyer, a Ph.D. business consultant and a movie producer, all of whom lodge at a Washington apartment rented for the duration of the trial."

And the FBI is investigating whether Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons (R) "accepted unreported gifts or payments from a company that was awarded secret military contracts when Mr. Gibbons served in Congress," the Wall Street Journal reports, updating a story it broke late last year. A spokesperson says that Gibbons "'held no special power in awarding defense contracts, which go through a multilevel approval process.'" The Journal notes that the Duke Cunningham case and "claims made against Mr. Gibbons have drawn attention to alleged congressional abuse of the classified or 'black' portion of the federal budget, which covers CIA, NSA and other secret government activities and has grown to at least $30 billion."